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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mate · pound · rash · bank · cap · perch · deal · march

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. bank — for money
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. mate — a friend
  5. deal — to handle
  6. pound — a weight
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. mate — a partner
  9. cap — a hat
  10. perch — the fish
  11. bank — for money
  12. march — music
  13. mate — to breed
  14. march — the month
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. rash — a series
  17. march — the month
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. rash — hasty
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. cap — a lid
  24. bank — of a river

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com